Above all the bustle, you might hear carolers

From left, Cisely Vera, Dimitrio Rios, Michelle Murray and Kendal Murray will be caroling on the far East Side on Wednesday. The group also will collect gifts for Dame la Mano and the Fabens Food Pantry. (Victor Calzada / El Paso Times)

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Mary Frances Keisling, right, and her husband Kim Keisling -- with their daughter Anna Robillard, son-in-law Dan Robillard and grandson Ethan -- sit in front of their Christmas tree with the family caroling books. The Keislings hos an annual caroling party at their Upper Valley home.

"There was a church across the street, and the people from that church would walk four blocks around the church and sing Christmas carols," Murray said. "We would watch and listen to them sing from out the window, and if it wasn't too cold, we would open the doors. I always thought that was neat."

Two years ago, Murray and several members of her son's Boy Scout pack were putting on a Christmas program at her East Side home when a neighbor heard them sing.

"I had the doors open, and my next-door neighbor heard us and said, 'Oh, how lovely, it's too bad you can't come outside and share with all of us,' " Murray said. "And one of the kids said, 'Sure, we can,' and we went outside and shared with them -- and two houses down, another lady said, 'Oh how wonderful,' and we ended up doing the whole block just on the spur of the moment."

With hopes of reigniting childhood memories and creating new ones for her son, Murray is organizing her far East El Paso neighborhood to ramble around crooning "Silent Night" or singing "Jingle Bells" on sidewalks and porches.

"Last Christmas and the one before, we went out on four different evenings with the Boy Scout group," Murray said.

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"This year we are planning for two, but if we get more participation from folks in the neighborhood, it'll be more often."

Murray is hosting a gift exchange and Christmas carol evening from 6 to 7:30 Wednesday at her home at 12521 Crystal Ridge. At 7:30, the group will go Christmas caroling through the neighborhood for about 45 minutes.

"I'm going to prepare finger foods, and we are collecting nonperishable food items, turkeys, new or used toys and new or used coats to donate to Dame La Mano and Fabens Food Pantry," she said.

If the gift is wrapped, she is asking participants to include a tag detailing whom it's for -- girl or boy, whether it's a toy, plus size, if it's clothes.

Murray plans a second night of caroling for Dec. 23.

"I give the kids in the Boy Scouts songbooks, and the kids and parents decorate it," she said. "With the neighbors, I go out the night before and I give them a note telling them what time we'll be there, so please look out your window or come out and enjoy the music."

Cicely Vera said she and her 9-year-old son, Dimitrio Rios, plan to join the group.

"I've never gone caroling before," she said "People never carol in my neighborhood. It's kind of nice to give back with our voice."

Vera said listening to carolers can put anyone in the Christmas spirit.

"It's nice when someone comes to your door and sings to you," she said. "Money and shopping -- that's what has become important -- but that's not what Christmas is about."

Nine-year-old Kendal Murray, whose favorite song to sing is "Feliz Navidad," said he enjoys spreading Christmas cheer to the neighborhood.

"Everyone is worried about shopping, shopping, shopping and presents, presents, presents," he said. "We go out there and sing and hope it makes everyone's Christmas a little better."

Dimitrio Rios, whose favorite Christmas song is "First Noel," is also looking forward to caroling.

"Everybody is so busy during the holidays," he said. "It's really nice that we can spread some Christmas joy to all those people who are busy."

In the Upper Valley, Mary Frances Keisling and her family have had an annual Christmas caroling party for the past 15 years.

"Family and friends come out and we carry candles and lanterns and we go to house to house singing Christmas carols," Keisling said. "When we are just about frozen, we go back home and have apple cider and hot chocolate and a huge dinner and dessert and continue to play the piano and sing more."

The group has grown to 50 people.

"We have people who are 73 years old to babies in arms," Keisling said. "It's really the spirit of Christmas and celebrating the birth of Jesus and getting out there and being together and just bringing joy to our neighbors. They really love it."

The songbook the Keisling group uses includes photocopies of Christmas carols she sang while growing up in Pensacola, Fla.

"My husband was stationed in Maryland, and we had a friend who had an annual Christmas caroling party. Our kids were really little, and we participated in that," she said. "When we moved from there, we just carried on the tradition. Everybody looks so forward to it every year."

This year, the Keislings will go out on Saturday, on Vista Linda, Gomez and Box Elder roads. At the end of the route, "usually somebody down there brings us some hot cider because by then we are frozen."

Their songbook has more than 30 carols. "We have all the traditional carols; all the wonderful songs like 'Silent Night,' 'Angels We Have Heard on High,' 'Rudolph,' 'We Wish You A Merry Christmas,' all the classics," Keisling said. "The kids even carry jingle bells."

They'll carol even if the weather outside is frightful.

"One year it was raining and it was really freezing cold, but we braved it and went out there anyway."

Asking Keisling to pick her favorite song is like asking who her favorite child is.

"I love them all," she said. Then she whispered, "But I especially like 'Angels We Have Heard on High.' "

Victor R. Martinez may be reached at vmartinez@elpasotimes.com; 546-6128.

Make plans

What: Gift exchange and Christmas caroling, and food, toy and coat drive (nonperishable food items, turkeys, new or used toys and new or used coats) to donate to Dame La Mano and Fabens Food Pantry.

When: Party with the gift exchange, 6-7:30 p.m. Wednesday. At 7:30 the group will go Christmas caroling through the neighborhood for about 45 minutes.

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